9/11 Book Recs

Taken in the 1980s

• I don't read many books about 9/11. Having witnessed it in my own way (I may include that account here tomorrow), I know that we all, and especially those of us New Yorkers or those of us with family and friends still there, have a story to tell and I don't often want to read others. These books are different.

• 9/11 Book Recs for this weekend:

• Wake Up Call: The Political Education of a 9/11 Widow by Kristen Breitweiser. This is her love story, her tragedy and the politics of becoming an activist.

• The Day the World Came to Town by Jim DeFede. This is the best, most uplifting book you will ever read about the days of 9/11. When all the planes were forced to land, they had to land somewhere.

• The Good Life by Jay McInerney (I haven't read this one. I saw the author on Morning Joe and it seemed like an interesting read. I've put it on my list.)

Snowdon Mountain. Eriyi.

When I was in college, my roommate did her student teaching in Britain. She invited me to come along for Christmas break. I thought she was crazy. Broke up with my boyfriend (well, he broke up with me, but who keeps track of those things) and borrowed some money from my younger brother, and off I went. We did a three week tour of England, Scotland and Wales and I thought it was fantastic. Traveling by airplane for the first time that I could remember (I think I flew before when I was five). New Year's in Trafalgar Square.The worst snow in 15 years in York. Cab rides, haircuts, pubs and cider and rain, hitch-hiking, hiking and cold. Very cold. And it was fantastic.

Arriving in Wales was the same as the rest. We met lovely people, checked in at the hostel and planned our three days. Pen-y-Pass and Bangor. It was nice. It was England, but it wasn't. It was Wales.

The feelings came suddenly and overwhelmingly. I was in Wales. But it was much more than the excitement of a European vacation. It wasn't that typical excitement that you get being in a new place, seeing new things, tasting new foods. It was Wales, but it was more than Wales.

It was spiritual, and even that description is wrong. It was blue sky and it was brilliant and it was something I'd never felt before. I felt as though I'd returned home. And I was home. Only I'd never been before and never expected to be again, and I'm not even Welsh. But I felt it. And ever since then, I've been (Welsh in my mind that is), and I've wanted nothign but to go back.

And finally, in 2009, I did go back. A gift. The gift of Wales, and I'll share what I went back for, even though what I found was much more than I'd left.

I thought I was looking for what I'd found in 1987. Snowdon had played an enormous role in my mind's eye of what I'd experienced and what I was looking for. And so, when I returned in 2009, I thought I was looking for the mountain. I wanted to climb it again. Should I return to Pen-y-Pass? Could I stay at the same hostel? I anticipated that this would be my last time; would it seem the same as the first time?

I had planned on Snowdon mid-week. Wednesday. I hadn't planned on meeting a friend in Bangor for dinner on Tuesday, and walking up a very, very steep hill and hurting my knee and having the most serious panic attack that I'd had since I got off the airplane and drove on the wrong side of the road (by Britain's standards.)

I could not get in my rental car and drive to the mountain. I couldn't do it, and I thought I would cry. And this is not a case where the mountain can actually come to me.

One of the people staying at the hostel offered to take me up to Llanberis. He and his daughter were driving there, then taking the train up and climbing back down. Did I want to go with them? I didn't. For so many reasons I didn't want to go with them, but I did. Once the decision to go along with the Dutch pair was made, my panic subsided. I was a little nervous, but I knew I'd made the right decision.

I got to Llanberis glad I didn't drive up those narrow, winding roads; we parted company at the train queue and I wandered. And I stared. And the mountain was there. It was perfect. The air was cool, but not cold at all. The sky was clear as you'll see below. The sky, the sky was the most brilliant blue and the clouds perfectly floated across the tops of the peaks. I was so glad I came and so glad I got the ride. It was beautiful, and it was this day that I realized that I wasn't looking for what I had in 1987. I was looking for now. I was looking for me, and there I was on the bus stop in Llanberis, staring and grinning like a madman and loving it.

Now, the bus ride, now that was something else, but that is another story.

From the bus stop in Llanberis.

 



Afon Hwch

(apologies for the photograph layout. I'm still trying to figure it out.)

Children, Risk, and Playgrounds

In response to this news article, I wrote this comment, and the more I read it, the more I wanted to share it publicly, albeit a couple of words or phrases cleaned up a bit, but context kept the same.

Councils told playground should 'bring back danger' after years of being softened by 'compensation culture'

There is nothing wrong with a 'bump, a bruise or a graze.' I agree completely.
The problem with this article is that it feeds into the stereotype that parents are just too lazy to watch their own kids and when they get hurt, they would rather sue for damages. And while some are lazy, the bigger problem that should be addressed is the compensation which they only spoke about briefly.

I'm also not sure you can expect the same level of care from a teenage babysitter as you can a parent in the chaos that is a public playground.

The fact is that the boy that got killed by a falling branch wasn't killed because he was 'soft.'

Kids are already inherent risk takers. They don't know that this swing is safer than the last one. They behave the same way and emotionally get the benefit of the risk without becoming hurt badly.

Net swings are not age appropriate for very young kids and adding them to a public park is literally an accident waiting to happen since the playground, by the fact of having it there is stating that it's all right for all who use the park.
The same for paddling pools.

Even putting an age on something is a misdirection. My oldest son was born very small. He was small until he hit grade school. His car seat which was appropriate for ages 6months through 5 years was suitable and safe for him until he was 9. When he was five, he could still use equipment aged for toddlers. He was often tangled in net bridges at McDonald's, and thought he could swim when he, in fact, could not.
Do you know how quickly a toddler can drown in a paddling pool with multitudes of adults watching him/her?

Will parents have to take a child development class to know what their child's actual limitations are before they're allowed to use the playground equipment?

What I'm saying is that the kids still take the risks. In fact, they take more because on safer and appropriate equipment, parents will let them alone to explore instead of hovering all the time.

I'm sorry for the long-windedness. I'm a little tired of non-parents and lay people bashing parents who parent and basing parental/child development decisions based simply on money or because 'it worked for me and I didn't die; it's good enough for my kid.'

And for people who do not know me here, I am the parent of three and hold a Master's degree in Educational Issues, so I'm on both sides of this fence.

Apologies and Future Blogs

I'm sorry for anyone actually reading this that my posts are not consistent.  I'm hoping to change this once the school year begins.

This summer has been a bit disjointed.

Everyone is being lazy. Last child is starting kindergarten next week. First child is starting high school. Middle child is in the middle.
I'm trying to practice and focus my writing to make a living freelancing as well as self-publishing a new travel chapbook for parents.
I've been resupplying three hikers walking to raise awareness for domestic violence and in memory of a friend of ours who was murdered Mother's Day weekend.  I may talk more about this in the coming weeks, and catch you up on the past three months.

I hope to also include more of my published writing from the past. Most of these are educational/curriculum related, and as I prepare to fly again for the second time in recent years, I'll plan on filling you in on my travel tips, my sightseeing and my anxiety.

Thanks for visiting and for coming back. I'd like to get it so you want to come back, so I'll keep trying.